Training with Tom Platz

For those who are unfamiliar with Tom Platz, he was a successful bodybuilder in the 1980s. He was well known for his leg development that he put down to mainly the squat exercise. He is now regarded as one of the greatest from a "golden era" of bodybuilding.

Recently I had the oportunity to participate in a "squat clinic" with Tom Platz. The day started in a classroom setting where Tom talked about his leg training philosophies and detailed some old stories from the golden era. Tom then analysed my squat technique in the gym providing some useful cues. He pushed me on a moderate weight set with high repetitions showing me there is always "5 more reps" if you really want it. It was great to hear Tom was impressed with my form and said I looked well rehearsed in the squat.

Tom further pushed me on a couple of other leg exercises and with his motivating voice and prescence ( for those in the bodybuilding world know you dont give up if Tom Platz says" do more" 🙂 ) pushed me through some brutal techniques.

This was a great experience for me to meet an idol. His love of bodybuilding is still very present and has given me a big kick in all my training since. Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately, my clients have felt the extra intensity from this day too 🙂 !